A picture holds a thousand words…

My friends graduating and me having a lot more free time on my hands has got me to think a lot about my college life. As I look back on the decisions I have made and the things I have experienced, feelings of sadness and remorse and regrets have surfaced. Being  slightly nostalgic, I started going through friends’ multiply sites and my own hard drive checking out old pictures taken during different times in my college life. All the pictures make me reminisce those times I have spent with my close friends who have made my college life so special and memorable for me. Each picture brings me back to that particular moment reminding me of what actually happened and how I felt. Those pictures remind me of how much I have changed as a person and how great it felt to have my friends beside me as I matured and learned more things about life. Checking out the pictures, I was amazed at how my friends have changed both physically, mentally and emotionally. Some friends changed a lot physically and became more good looking. Some friends, like me, put on weight but nonetheless still look good (again like me haha). Some never changed physically but matured greatly. Looking more at the pictures made me feel a pang of sadness because as people have graduated, all our paths have changed. I might still be in school but in another semester, I will be doing something for myself. Another good friend will be migrating abroad, while another friend might be publishing a book. Others are still trying to find themselves, while others are already busy looking for jobs in sales and finance. Some are entering the world of marketing as there have been many new ways of marketing products. Others are also trying out the IT world.  There is a part of me that is extremely happy for them as they will be finding their place in the real world. There is a part of me that is jealous like hell that I am not experiencing the same thing. And there is that part of me that is scared that we will drift apart. Granted that we were bound to do different things, a part of me is scared that I would lose my friends and I would lose that place in their lives that I once held.

It seems like it was only yesterday when I entered the Ateneo and started trying to understand the system worked. It seems like only yesterday that I met my different friends for the first time. It seems like only yesterday when we crammed for thesis. It seems like only yesterday when many tears were shed because of the stress from school coupled by stress brought about by personal problems. It seems like only yesterday when we were running in Intramuros to take pictures required for a class.

But then I guess it is really like that. All good things must come to an end to be able to pave the way for new and better things to come. And I am certain that great things are in store for my friends who are each brilliant in their way. For now, I will just pore over old pictures and think of the thousand words that would remind me of the great people and the memories that will be forever embedded in my heart and mind.